Journal
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BOTANY
Volume 89, Issue 8, Pages 1270-1274Publisher
BOTANICAL SOC AMER INC
DOI: 10.3732/ajb.89.8.1270
Keywords
distyly, floral herbivory, flower predation; flower size; Gelsemium sempervirens, heterostyly, nectar production
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We tested the hypothesis that traits traditionally thought to function in pollination can also influence attack by floral herbivores Because distylous species produce two different flower types, we used Gelsemium sempervirens, a distylous vine of southeastern USA. to examine the frequency and pattern of floral herbivory in relation to floral characteristics Flowers of the short-styled morph had larger corollas but showed no difference in the volume or concentration of nectar produced Over the 2 yr of this study, 20-30% of plants suffered floral herbivory The pattern of damage was morph-specific Long-styled flowers were more likely to have damaged pistils, while stamens were more often damaged in short-styled flowers. In this distylous species, exserted flower organs were more likely to be eaten Such differential herbivory based on the position of floral organs within a flower may result in reduced fitness via either male (short-styled morph) or female function (long-styled morph).
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